Hard Proof For Hunting The Midday Shift

It’s often preached in books and articles, that the middle of the day, especially during the rut, is one of the best times to get an arrow in a mature whitetail. We’re told to “just say no” to midday naps in the cabin and hot chili around the table with friends. Instead we’re expected to pack PB&J sandwiches and sit on cold metal stands all day, as our rear ends slowly become flattened like pancakes. But is it all really worth it or are we, the hunting media, just blowing smoke up your ass?

Well I can finally say, that I may have come across some more definitive evidence in regards to the probability of success during the middle of the day. Today, while waiting in the airport on my way to New York, I came upon an interesting piece of information in the book “Mapping Trophy Bucks”. Author Brad Herndon cites the Pope & Young Record books as showing that 52% of record book bucks are killed between the hours of 4:00 PM and sunset, making this the time frame with the highest percentage of entries. On the other hand, the time frame between 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM only accounts for 3% of entries, making the middle of the day the runt of the Pope & Young pack. But Brad says not so fast, we need to take into account how many hunters are actually in the woods during these times of day.

Now I’m not sure where this data comes from, but it is asserted in “Mapping Trophy Bucks” that an estimated 60% of total man hours hunted occur between 4:00 PM and sunset. On the other hand, only 1% of total man hours hunted take place between 11:00 and 2:00. But here’s the kicker, given this ratio of % of man hours hunted compared to % of Pope & Youngs harvested, the midday hours actually present the highest rate of success out of any time of the day!

So to put in laymens terms, although the midday hours see the fewest hunters in the woods, this small number of hunters has the highest percent chance of bagging a record book buck! Now if that won’t get you eating PB&J sandwiches on stand in November, I don’t know what will.

That being said, I’m curious if any of you guys have seen or heard of similar data proving the effectiveness of midday sits? Have you experienced success in the middle of the day? Lets hear it!